One Airline Had a Great 2020: Maduro’s State-Controlled Carrier

Venezuela’s Conviasa is among only options to enter or leave
Ticket prices in dollars have spiked, rival carriers sidelined

A worker inspect the Conviasa Airlines aircraft arriving with Russian Sputnik V Covid-19 vaccines at Simon Bolivar International Airport (CCS) in Maiquetia, Venezuela, on Feb. 13.Photographer: Carlos Becerra/Bloomberg

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By Alex Vasquez and Nicolle Yapur

March 4, 2021 at 12:32 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Last year may have been the worst in the history of the global aviation industry but for Nicolas Maduro’s ragtag Venezuelan airline, business boomed.

Conviasa, as the state-run airline is known, says that its operations jumped 85% in 2020, making it one of the few carriers in the world to post any growth after the pandemic wiped out air travel.